ONLY 3 IN ACTION?
In a competition to ascertain what the lowest turnout from East Down runners over a weekend in recent years then, last weekend’s total of 3 at 2 separate events, must really be the winner. However most can probably be excused as it was the final weekend of “getting in a 20 miler” in preparation for the Dublin City marathon on the last Sunday of this month. (See apologetic humble pie being eaten before end of this report!)
JIMMY’S TEN WINNERS FILL 3 of TOP 6 PLACES in BANGOR
The 2 events in question were the Bangor Classic 10K, which this year incorporated the Ulster and NI 10K Road Racing Championships, and the Ford 5K in Newcastle. The former event had over 1000 entries and almost 1000 finishers and had probably the best front end in terms of quality runners, of any race in recent times, in which the top three broke 31 minutes and the top 10 all broke 33 minutes. The Derry based Kenyan Gideon Kipsang, 2015 winner of Jimmy’s Ten, who last weekend won the Belfast City Half Marathon only just got up on the line to beat Kevin Seaward, who was a superb 4th in the recent Commonwealth Games Marathon, both being credited with the same time 30.21. Close behind came Declan Reed 30.56 in third place ahead of Mark McKinstry 31.14 who won Jimmy’s Ten this year, followed by Scott Rankin in 31.56 and Ben Branagh 32.00, who won Jimmy’s Ten in 2017.
PAUL IN THE 40s
The sole East Down representative in the race was Paul Lloyd, who came agonisingly close to breaking the 40 minute barrier for the first time, clocking 40.06, a mere second per mile deficit! But come it will Paul, possibly some time when you’re least expecting it. The secret of success is to relax and try not to think about it. Don’t go out every week with the aim of breaking through and don’t be too hard on yourself – there are those who dream of the times you are clocking now! Perhaps the Saintfield 10K on 13th October could be the one? This race organised by Atlas Running on behalf of Saintfield Striders was a big success last year and promises to be even bigger and better this year. Entry details can be found at https://www.atlasrunning.co.uk Failing that the Seeley Cup in Ormeau Park on 1st December is a flat fast course which may tick the PB box.
Paul Lloyd Paul Lloyd at Bangor, not looking too disappointed at missing out on a sub 40 time.
FORD 5K COMES HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Paul Burns and Callum Kent were the lone raiders from East Down to try out the new route which was widely publicised as much flatter and faster than last year.
Here’s what Paul had to say afterwards-
“I thought the race itself was really good – it was a flat, fast course through the centre of Newcastle finishing with a lap of the Gaelic pitch, well supported and well marshalled. The organisers provided great refreshments afterwards with hot food and sandwiches, tea & coffee, etc. and also some very impressive looking trophies. It deserved better support but I understand that it’s hard to compete against free Parkruns all over the country on the same day. But it’s definitely a race I would recommend and do again.” Paul’s time of 17.35 and 6th place overall was a PB, made all the more satisfying as he was still feeling the effects of last Sunday’s Belfast City Half Marathon and a tough hill session during training on Thursday night.
Callum Kent 81 and Paul Burns at the Ford 5K on Saturday.
CALLUM ALSO ON THE PB TRAIL and CROSS COUNTRY TOO!
Another super run saw Callum Kent not only land the trophy for 1st Juvenile to finish but also set a new PB of 20.05 into the bargain. Well done to him and he tells me he is looking forward to the upcoming cross country season which will give him the opportunity to build up some considerable strength in his legs to improve his road and track running speed next year. Good luck to him in that.
EVEN MORE RUNNING THAN I THOUGHT
I have also heard since I began writing this that some other Club members did in fact run at the weekend, several taking part in Parkruns in preparation for next Saturday’s Relay races in Victoria Park and elsewhere. So my apologies to anyone who was offended by my opening remarks, if you’re still reading this. Neil McCartan set a new Parkrun PB of 15.26, though not a 5K PB, in that very venue on Saturday, an indication of his form at the moment. So watch out all comers on Saturday, EDAC are on the move.
RACE TO TRAIN?
Clare Carson ran the 3/4 marathon in Ballybofey, Donegal on Sunday. She is going well in her lead up to Dublin and her tack of getting in the long miles by entering events seems to be working as she completed in 2 hours 50 minutes. She has found that racing breaks up the tedium and has produced some good performances on the way. I have to say that Clare’s philosophy exactly matches mine in this respect. If you’re training for a marathon, racing a slightly shorter distance than your target e.g. a half marathon or even 10K, faster than your planned time is an ideal way to keep the boredom away and to fine tune your fitness.
EDIE IN SEARCH OF MORE VARIETY?
And of course there are things other than running to do at weekends to keep your fitness at a high level, like taking part in triathlons for instance! Edie Carroll added a couple more disciplines to her training recently in order to prepare for her first triathlon. The event was the “Tri-gether Ladies Only Triathlon” hosted by 247 Triathlon Club in Letterkenny. It was a huge success with 100 females of all ages turning out to race on the day. There were 2 distances of pool swim – 400m or 750m with the same bike (20K) and run (5K) courses for both classes. Edie having only recently come to swimming opted for the shorter swim and having conquered that challenge in under 9 minutes, she cycled the fastest bike split of the day and had a decent “off the bike run” giving her second place overall. It was a well organised event with a very encouraging organising team and worth considering for anyone wanting to cross train for their running season. Well Done Edie.
Edie Carroll strides out on her way to 2nd place overall in the triathlon I Letterkenny on Sunday.
EARLIER IN THE WEEK
Mackenzie Murray running for St Colmcille’s High School, Crossgar secured 2nd place in the Junior Boys age group at NMDDC Schools’ XC which was held at Kilbroney Forest Park mid-week. He ran a tactical race sitting in 3rd for a long way then he and the boy who had been in second went for a late surge and passed the previous leader. It was an exciting race and one which will give Mackenzie the incentive to race to the line every time. Well done! I have been unable to find any published results of this event on the NM&DDC site or elsewhere, so if you’re annoyed about not getting a deserved mention here then why not report what you’ve done each week directly to me? My email address is jaykwin69@gmail.com and my telephone number is 07398514122.
East Down’s Mackenzie Murray smiles after winning the Silver medal for his school St Colmcille’s Secondary in Crossgar
INDUCTION NIGHT
On Monday Night past EDAC held an Induction Night for our current Junior members. We looked back at the achievements that have been made by various teams and individuals throughout the last 12 months and commended good attendance and consistent efforts at training sessions. The young athletes were shown a training plan going into the XC season and all received an EDAC buff to wear in the colder weather ahead. It was fantastic to see so many young people committing themselves to the sport and keen to represent the club. It was also heartening to see parents prepared to add their names to the rota to help the process run smoothly. It takes a lot of manpower to organise a junior section but the atmosphere on Monday Night was a just reward. Here’s to the future!
Some of East Down’s Junior members pictured at the Club’s Induction night on 24 September.
Joe Quinn & Alison Carroll
1 October 2018